Dog Hunter

He's been married five times and carries a can of bear mace.

Dog Hunter is a Beastformer from the Generation 1 continuity family.

Dog Hunter (ドッグハンター Doggu Hantā) is a Beastformer of boundless energy and cheer, willing to talk to anyone. Having allied with the Autobots during the Decepticon-assisted occupation of planet Beast, he has since risen to the role of King of his home country of Iriano, assisted by Emperor Udan. The eager canine has a vast wealth of knowledge of his homeland's culture, and he's happy to tell you all about it... though once he starts on a lecture, he tends to slip into "intellectual" mode at times, even coming across uncharacteristically stern.

His specialty is high-speed reconnaissance, with emphasis on "high-speed": aside from his ultra-keen senses that allow him to keep track of his target, he's one of the fastest things on the planet. His cybernetically-enhanced legs let him run at speeds of over 1000km an hour, and he can push himself even harder to hit Mach 1. If that didn't make him a hard enough target, his "Beam Hunter" (ビームハンター Bīmu Hantā) MVP Weapon is a laser rifle with the ability to teleport himself and other objects, an ancient secret art of the Iriano people.

He's incredibly close to Smileduck, and through him shares a friendship with Big Serow.

Fiction

Beastformers comic

Dog Hunter was among the Beastformers who stood in defense of Bistoram when the Laser Beasts invaded the surface. Beastformers VS Laser Beasts

Legends comic

Dog Hunter was part of the final battle between the Beastformers and the Laser Beasts for Beast in 2023. He witnessed White Leo and Tigerburn become crystalline statues, ending the war. The Road to Legends' Revival Chapter 1

Toys

Transformers: Beastformers

• Burstsun Special Set (Multi-pack, 1987)

• ID number: 61
• Accessories: Rifle

Part of the third series of Takara's Beastformers toys, Dog Hunter is a small soft-plastic figure of an anthropomorphic English Pointer dog with dark blue robotic armor. The Battle Emblem on his chest reveals one of three symbols when warmed up; Fire, Water or Wood.

During this line, Dog Hunter was only available in the Burstsun Special Set (バーストサンスペシャルセット Bāsutosan Supesharu Setto) multipack. This blindpacked set contains 10 figures out of a potential 14. Thankfully, these were not randomly-packed, and came in two distinct lineups.

The first version has White Leo with an exclusive "Burstsun" Battle Emblem, Black Jaguar, Būpink, Dog Hunter, Dream Eater, Muskhorn, Pangol, Slo, White Cow, and Udan.

The second version has Ghost Alligatron, Black Jaguar, Būpink, Crowmax, Earthhog, Mingo Kid, Pangol, Slo, White Cow, and Udan.

In the Hasbro Battle Beasts line, there is a variant to "Pixelated Pointer", giving him bright pinkish-purple chest detailing and eyes, rather than the usual medium-purple. It is actually a bit hard to tell which of these variants were released in Japan (possibly both?), given the difference is not particularly easy to tell without a direct side-by-side comparison.

Beastformers

• Dog Hunter (Beastformer, 1988)

• ID number: 61
• Accessories: "Beam Hunter" MVP Weapon

Re-released in the Transformers-less Beastformers sequel series, Dog Hunter was given a straight re-release with new packaging and a new, more filled-out bio card with corrected coloring. This new card also gave his weapon, now branded an "MVP Weapon", the name "Beam Hunter".

He was sold in the second assortment of individually-packed Beastformers, with a peg-hole in the top flap, and a sticker on the bottom with his name and role on it. This series did not have any kind of "rare card" random pack-in promotion. Samples of Dog Hunter (among others) have also been found on simple bubble cards, with the bio card positioned so the name shows clearly under the figure's feet, but it is uncertain if this style of packaging was ever properly sold at retail.

Late in the run, the "mood ring" styled rubsigns were replaced with new rubsigns that revealed full-color Fire/Wood/Water images on black backdrops. (These rubsign variants also happened at the same time in the Hasbro Battle Beast version of the line.)

Notes

• His 1987 character art (which is the same art as on the Hasbro Battle Beasts cast poster, seen at the top of the page) incorrectly gives him a gold rifle. His later 1988 art corrects this mistake.
• Dog Hunter's post-Transformers bio card gives him the nickname "Hunter" (ハンター Hantā).

Foreign names

• English: Pixilated Pointer